Articles for tag: Atlantic Ocean, geological changes, Oceanography, Plate tectonics, seafloor spreading

Why the Atlantic Ocean Is Quietly Getting Bigger Each Year

Why the Atlantic Ocean Is Quietly Getting Bigger Each Year

Andrew Alpin

You might think the world’s oceans are unchanging, eternal features of our planet. The truth is far more dynamic and fascinating. As a result, the Atlantic Basin is expanding at about 0.8 to 2 inches a year, making it one of the most active geological features on Earth. This isn’t just some abstract scientific concept ...

8 Ocean Phenomena So Strange They Were Once Called Myths

8 Ocean Phenomena So Strange They Were Once Called Myths

Gargi Chakravorty

You’ve probably heard sailors’ tales filled with impossible wonders: ghostly lights dancing beneath the waves, towering walls of water emerging from calm seas, and rivers flowing through the ocean itself. For centuries, these stories were dismissed as the fantasies of men too long at sea or the exaggerations of those seeking fame in port-side taverns. ...

Why The Pacific Ocean Is Rising Faster Than Predicted

Why The Pacific Ocean Is Rising Faster Than Predicted

Jan Otte

You might think the ocean rises at a predictable rate. Think again. According to a NASA-led analysis, last year’s rate of rise was 0.23 inches (0.59 centimeters) per year, compared to the expected rate of 0.17 inches (0.43 centimeters) per year. This isn’t just a minor statistical blip. Scientists are witnessing ocean dynamics playing out ...

How Scientists Track Hurricanes Using Whale Migration Data

How Scientists Track Hurricanes Using Whale Migration Data

Gargi Chakravorty

Marine science has always been full of surprises. Yet few discoveries have been as unexpected as the connection between whale migrations and storm forecasting. When researchers first noticed patterns in whale movement data that seemed to predict atmospheric changes, it sounded almost too fantastic to be true. Today, this revolutionary approach is transforming how we ...

rocky shore under white clouds during daytime

The Ocean Currents That Quietly Regulate Earth’s Climate

Suhail Ahmed

They do not roar like hurricanes or crack like thunder, yet ocean currents quietly choreograph the world’s weather, steering heat, moisture, and entire ecosystems as if by an invisible hand. For decades, scientists chased a mystery: why do some regions heat up while others cool, even under the same rising greenhouse blanket? The solution, it ...

Colorful underwater view of seaweeds and marine life in a tropical ocean.

Krill Crisis? The Ocean’s Smallest Warriors Under Threat from Warming Seas

Jan Otte

Below the frozen waters of Antarctica, there is a silent crisis brewing one that has the potential to radiate throughout the entire marine food chain. Antarctic krill, small shrimp-like animals no larger than a human finger, are the uncelebrated champions of the Southern Ocean. Antarctic krill supply food to whales, penguins, and seals, sustain entire ...

Iceberg A23a Collapsing Near Penguin Refuge Time Is Melting Away

Jan Otte

The biggest iceberg in the world, a frozen behemoth the size of Cornwall, is breaking into thousands of icy fragments close to South Georgia’s wildlife-rich coastlines. After almost four decades of drifting from Antarctica in 1986, this “megaberg” is finally giving way to warmer temperatures; its soaring cliffs are collapsing in a show both amazing ...